On the afternoon of August 20, 2024, President Xi Jinping held a group meeting with foreign parliamentary leaders attending the commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the National People's Congress' (NPC) affiliation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the 2024 interregional seminar on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for parliaments of developing countries, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Xi Jinping welcomed the speakers' visit to China and pointed out that they come from countries on different continents. He said, "We are all members of the Global South." Despite different national conditions and realities, China and the countries are all good brothers and good partners with a shared vision. Noting that the current global landscape is rapidly evolving, Xi Jinping said, China is ready to work with other countries to advocate an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, and build the Earth we live on into a harmonious family.

Xi Jinping stressed that exchanges between legislative bodies are an important part of state-to-state relations. Legislative bodies have the responsibility and ability to play an active role in forming state-to-state relations based on equality and mutual trust, expanding mutually beneficial cooperation for development, promoting open and inclusive exchanges and mutual learning, and advancing global governance featuring fairness and equity, so as to make unique contributions to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. China has always been a member of the "Global South", and solidarity and cooperation with other developing countries is an unshakable foundation of China's foreign relations. The modernization China pursues is not one that benefits China alone. China is ready to work with other countries, including developing countries, to promote global modernization featuring peaceful development, mutually beneficial cooperation and prosperity for all. Together, China and other countries should be the staunch force for peace, the core driving force for open development, the construction team of global governance, and the advocates for exchange among civilizations.

Xi Jinping briefed the foreign parliamentary leaders on the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee. He pointed out that China's unswerving commitment to high-standard opening up will inject new momentum into the development of the global economy, provide new opportunities for deepening mutually beneficial cooperation with other countries, and open up new prospects for the common development of developing countries. China is ready to strengthen exchanges and cooperation with the legislative bodies of other countries to jointly explore modernization paths suited to their own national conditions.

Xi Jinping pointed out that one important experience that can be drawn from China's remarkable achievements in governance is the adherence to the path of socialist political advancement with Chinese characteristics under the leadership of the CPC and the commitment to developing a whole-process people's democracy. The essence of the people's democracy is that the people get to discuss their own affairs for the greatest common denominator that suits the will and demands of the whole society. The whole-process people's democracy has not only a complete set of institutions and procedures, but also full-fledged civil participation, making it broad, genuine and effective. China will, as always, support the NPC in deepening exchanges and cooperation with the IPU. On the basis of mutual respect for each other's development paths and systems, efforts should be made to strengthen the exchange of legislative and state governance experience, jointly enhance the capacity to perform duties, and foster a favorable legal environment and a solid foundation of public opinion for deepening friendly cooperation among the Global South countries.

IPU President and Tanzania's National Assembly Speaker Tulia Ackson, Speaker of Namibia's National Assembly Peter Katjavivi, and Chairman of Suriname's National Assembly Marinus Bee addressed the meeting on behalf of the foreign speakers. They said the IPU has maintained long-term friendly and close cooperation with the NPC of China, and thanked the Chinese side for its positive commitment to promoting unity, mutual trust, friendship and cooperation among the parliaments of all countries, as well as its contribution to the development of various undertakings of the IPU and the implementation of the United Nations 2030 SDGs. As the largest developing country in the world, China has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty and made remarkable achievements in development, setting an example, boosting confidence and providing important opportunities for other developing countries. The IPU appreciates China's stance of upholding fairness and justice in international affairs, advocacy of equality for all countries regardless of size, and significant contributions to world peace, stability and common development. All parties expressed appreciation for the Belt and Road Initiative, the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative put forward by China. They are committed to forging closer friendly partnerships with China, firmly adhering to the one-China principle, maintaining close cooperation with China, jointly upholding multilateralism, practicing the common values of humanity, and advocating an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, so as to promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Cai Qi, Wang Yi and Li Hongzhong, among others, were present at the meeting.